I had cedar fever – an invasion of the breath- and sinus-snatchers last year, and it really was un-fun. It feels like the flu — body aches, congestion, headaches, runny noise, cough — but is not viral. It’s “just” allergies. But it’s bad enough that I took myself to the community clinic to get checked out. For three long hours. They nice nurse practitioner jammed a sharp pointy swab deep into each sinus cavity, and then also gave me a breathing treatment with the stuff that’s in inhalers. The bottle I had was expired, I guess I didn’t deem it important enough to keep that current. Boy was that a bad decision!

Cedar is really mountain laurel which releases this yellow goop that can mess with the hardiest of outdoorspeople, including cyclists. Because we’re outside sucking in “fresh” air, there’s no way around it. Unless some nice soul wants to tell Santa I’ve been a very good dude and he should help a dude out with an indoor trainer that has a cadence-ometer so that I can get my miles indoors. Unlikely I’m getting a Peloton for Xmas or Hannukah, though. So thank you Mother Nature for making biking harder than. It already is!

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The treatment helped, and so did taking Tylenol, having a nap, Neti pot, antihistamine spray, and not rushing around so much even though I needed to – it all also helped. But as I write last night’s sleep deprivation (due to cedar-induced coughing) is catching up with me. It’s a small miracle I got out to walk the 37th Street weird Austin light show (pictured above) and also to bike downtown to retrieve my mail, which is never advisable to do by car. Fortunately the cedar is low today and biking helps clear a lot of gunk out or the sinuses, even if the biking is slowgoing and involves plenty of painful suffering.

Today I’ll try again to leave town to visit family. I’ll take my bike and gear in the trunk of a friend’s borrowed car. And still somehow make the time to do my quartet of daily activities: bike, walk, write and do yoga. Walking may be after people are asleep, or with the dog. And biking not too much. I’m so close to my goal though, it would really sick to give up now. So I won’t quit, but I will have to take ‘er easy.

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Hopefully I catch up on on some sleep and am better in the morning. Until then, I’m taking some pills, sprays and trying to get to bed early. I need to get better soon, and it’s a relief that it’s not the flu!

You can do the following to try to beat it:

1. Try to wash alot of your clothes regularly.
2. Shower before bed.
3. Don’t take antibiotics (unless it’s turned to bronchitis – a real concern).
4. Use a Neti Pot with distilled water.
5. Bike with a face mask (not ideal).
6. Use a trainer and stay inside.
7. Take a break (or don’t).
8. See an allergist.
9. Take herbal stuff before cedar season hits.
10. Suffer through it.

If you get cedar fever, or something like it, what do you do?

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